The Ligne de Sceaux (Sceaux Line) was a railway line in France running from
Paris
Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
, which initially linked the
Place Denfert-Rochereau
Place Denfert-Rochereau, previously known as Place d'Enfer, is a public square located in the 14th arrondissement of Paris, France, in the Montparnasse district, at the intersection of the boulevards Raspail, Arago, and Saint-Jacques, and the ave ...
(then called the ''Place d'Enfer'', in Paris, to the town of
Sceaux.
The line originally opened in 1846 as a broad gauge line to demonstrate the
Arnoux system
The Arnoux system is a train articulation system, for turning on railroad tracks, invented by Jean-Claude-Républicain Arnoux and patented in France in 1838. Arnoux was the chief engineer of the Ligne de Sceaux which was originally built with very ...
and was extended to the south to Sceaux. A branch, now the main line, was built to
Orsay
Orsay () is a Communes of France, commune in the Essonne Departments of France, department in Île-de-France in northern France. It is located in the southwestern suburbs of Paris, France, from the Kilometre Zero, centre of Paris.
A fortifie ...
and extended to
Saint-Rémy-lès-Chevreuse
Saint-Rémy-lès-Chevreuse (, literally ''Saint-Rémy near Chevreuse'') is a commune in the Yvelines department, in the Île-de-France region of north-central France.
Saint-Rémy-lès-Chevreuse station is the southwestern endpoint of the RER B ...
and then to
Limours
Limours, often referred to as ''Limours-en-Hurepoix'' () is a commune the Essonne department in Île-de-France in northern France.
Geography
Limours is located from Paris.
Population
Inhabitants of Limours are known as ''Limouriens'' in Frenc ...
. In the latter configuration, it is also called the Paris-Luxembourg–Limours line (line 552000 of the national rail network) by
SNCF Réseau
The Société nationale des chemins de fer français (; abbreviated as SNCF ; French for "National society of French railroads") is France's national state-owned railway company. Founded in 1938, it operates the country's national rail traffi ...
.
With a capital of 3 million francs, it was one of five companies placed under sequestration by the State during the Crash of 1847, along with the
Compagnie du chemin de fer de Paris à Orléans
The ''Compagnie du chemin de fer de Paris à Orléans'' (PO) was an early French railway company.
It merged with the ''Chemins de fer du Midi'' to form the ''Chemins de fer de Paris à Orléans et du Midi'' (PO-Midi) in 1934. In 1938 the PO-Midi ...
on 4 April 1848, the
Compagnie du chemin de fer de Bordeaux à La Teste on 30 October 1848 and the
Compagnie du chemin de fer de Marseille à Avignon on 21 November 1848. Similarly, the
Compagnie du chemin de fer de Paris à Lyon was nationalised in 1848.
In 1895, it was extended north into Paris to
Luxembourg station
Luxembourg railway station ( lb, Gare Lëtzebuerg, french: Gare de Luxembourg, german: Bahnhof Luxemburg) is the main railway station serving Luxembourg City, in southern Luxembourg. It is operated by Chemins de Fer Luxembourgeois, the state-own ...
. In 1937, it was transferred by the ''Compagnie du chemin de fer de Paris à Orléans'' to the
Compagnie du chemin de fer métropolitain de Paris
The Compagnie du chemin de fer métropolitain de Paris S.A. (Paris Metropolitan Railway Company Ltd.), or CMP, was the forerunner of the RATP, the company managing the Paris Métro.
Origin
So as not to be dependent on the Chemin de fer de l' ...
(CMP) after thorough modernisation. The commissioning of electric railcars suitable for the line, the
Z railcars, and the redevelopment of the infrastructure with high platforms and high-performance signalling made it a core section of a future regional metro, enabling it to double its traffic in less than a year. The section from Saint-Rémy-lès-Chevreuse to Limours was abandoned in 1939.
After a period of particularly high traffic during the Second World War and the following years, the long line was integrated into the
Réseau Express Régional
The Réseau Express Régional ( en, Regional Express Network), commonly abbreviated RER (), is a hybrid commuter rail and rapid transit system serving Paris and its Île-de-France, suburbs. It acts as a combined city-centre underground rail syst ...
(Regional Express Network, RER) in 1977. It now constitutes the two southern branches of
line B of the RER south of the
Gare du Nord
The Gare du Nord (; English: ''station of the North'' or ''Northern Station''), officially Paris-Nord, is one of the six large mainline railway station termini in Paris, France. The station accommodates the trains that run between the capital ...
: branch B2 to Robinson and branch B4 to Saint-Rémy-lès-Chevreuse.
Construction of the line
Paris to Sceaux
![Ligne de Sceaux carte](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0f/Ligne_de_Sceaux_carte.jpg)
In 1838,
Jean-Claude-Républicain Arnoux, a graduate of the
École polytechnique
École may refer to:
* an elementary school in the French educational stages normally followed by secondary education establishments (collège and lycée)
* École (river), a tributary of the Seine flowing in région Île-de-France
* École, Savoi ...
, proposed a technical solution to improve the speed of trains in curves, while reducing wear on the rails and wheels. He suggested separating the wheels from the same axle and hinging the axles on a central pivot instead of fixing them to the carriage frames. In addition, he recommended the use of a broad gauge of . This is called the
Arnoux system
The Arnoux system is a train articulation system, for turning on railroad tracks, invented by Jean-Claude-Républicain Arnoux and patented in France in 1838. Arnoux was the chief engineer of the Ligne de Sceaux which was originally built with very ...
(''système Arnoux'').
In order to implement his system, Arnoux secured the adoption of a law on 5 August 1844 that granted him a concession to build and operate the Sceaux line for a period of fifty years. On 21 February 1845, he founded the ''Compagnie du Chemin de fer de Paris à Sceaux'' (Paris–Sceaux Railway Company). The first section connected the ''embarcadère'' (pier) of
Enfer (renamed Denfert-Rochereau in 1895), located at the
Barrière d'Enfer in Paris, to Sceaux. It was inaugurated on 7 June 1846 and opened to the public on 23 June.
This first section, which wound around several sharp curves and reverse curves from
Bourg-la-Reine
Bourg-la-Reine () is a commune in the southern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the center of Paris.
History
In 1792, during the French Revolution, Bourg-la-Reine (meaning "Town of the Queen") was renamed Bourg-l'Égalité (meani ...
to enable a gradient of 1.15% and passed through an intermediate station called Fontenay (named after the street of ''Rue de Fontenay'' in Sceaux), had its terminus at Sceaux. The winding route was intended to prove the relevance and effectiveness of the Arnoux system. The gradient of the track did not exceed 3.0%. Although the structures were planned from the start to enable a double track, only a single track was laid for the opening. A second track was laid from Paris to Bourg-la-Reine in 1863.
Bourg-la-Reine to Orsay
![Anjubault-1855-8PO-1867](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1f/Anjubault-1855-8PO-1867.jpg)
The line suffered from losses during its operations: while very profitable during fine weather, it struggled to attract travellers during the rest of the year. The company considered an extension to Orsay to improve its profitability. The first route considered would have branched off near Fontenay station and would have included a branch towards Longjumeau. This first proposal was not pursued, but the current route, with a branch at Bourg-la-Reine, was seriously studied.
However, the financial crisis of 1847 further weakened the company, so that it was placed in receivership in 1849–1850. During the
Revolution of 1848
The Revolutions of 1848, known in some countries as the Springtime of the Peoples or the Springtime of Nations, were a series of political upheavals throughout Europe starting in 1848. It remains the most widespread revolutionary wave in Europea ...
, earthworks were built from Sceaux to Orsay, financed by the State within the framework of the
National Workshops
National Workshops (french: Ateliers Nationaux) refer to areas of work provided for the unemployed by the French Second Republic after the Revolution of 1848. The political crisis which resulted in the abdication of Louis Philippe caused an indus ...
. They reached Palaiseau in 1849. The State, wary of the company's future, built the platforms to conventional railway standards, that is to say with radii of curvature grrater than the sharp curves accepted by the Arnoux system.
The company, partially refloated, obtains a concession to build a line from Bourg-la-Reine to Orsay by a law of 10 June 1853. In addition to passenger traffic, significant freight traffic was forecast, notably the transport of
sandstone
Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate grains. Sandstones comprise about 20–25% of all sedimentary rocks.
Most sandstone is composed of quartz or feldspar (both silicates) ...
from the Yvette valley and fresh vegetables.
The line was single track, broad gauge, although the concession provides for its conversion to
standard gauge
A standard-gauge railway is a railway with a track gauge of . The standard gauge is also called Stephenson gauge (after George Stephenson), International gauge, UIC gauge, uniform gauge, normal gauge and European gauge in Europe, and SGR in Ea ...
in the long term. The line comprised 17 structures, including a 205 metre-long tunnel. Between Palaiseau and Orsay, the line was also sinuous, unlike the section built by the state: the radii of curvature were as little as 125 m.
The section was inaugurated to Orsay on 28 July 1854. The terminus was at a place called "les Planches", near the current
Guichet.
Despite some signs of financial improvement, the company remained fragile, and in particular could not acquire the rolling stock for the establishment of a freight service, which would nevertheless have been lucrative.
Orsay to Limours
The
Compagnie du Paris-Orléans bought the Sceaux line from the Arnoux company in 1857 to thwart the plans of a competing company that wanted to gain rail access to Paris. In the project presented, the Sceaux line was to be integrated into a route from Paris to Tours through Châteaudun and Vendôme. However, once this competitor had been eliminated and in-depth studies carried out, the Paris-Orléans determined that the beginning of the line to Tours via Orsay was impractical due to a succession of plateaus and valleys. The Paris-Orléans gained approval for
a new route via Brétigny. Following the financial collapse of the
Compagnie du chemin de fer Grand-Central de France
The Compagnie du chemin de fer Grand-Central de France (''Grand-Central Railway Company of France''), commonly known as the Compagnie du Grand-Central, or more simply the Grand-Central, was a railway company which operated in France from 1853 to ...
and its dismantling organised by the State in 1857 for the benefit of the
Compagnie du chemin de fer de Paris à Orléans
The ''Compagnie du chemin de fer de Paris à Orléans'' (PO) was an early French railway company.
It merged with the ''Chemins de fer du Midi'' to form the ''Chemins de fer de Paris à Orléans et du Midi'' (PO-Midi) in 1934. In 1938 the PO-Midi ...
and the establishment of the
Compagnie des chemins de fer de Paris à Lyon et à la Méditerranée, the Compagnie du chemin de fer de Paris à Orléans bought the line from Paris to Orsay under an agreement signed between the two companies on 18 June 1855. This treaty was approved by decree on 19 June 1857.
As compensation for a population that was to be deprived of a railway, it was proposed to build a section from Orsay to Limours as an extension of the Sceaux line. A decree of August 28, 1862 ratified this extension to Limours, via Saint-Rémy-lès-Chevreuse and the valley of Saint-Paul. Thus, the Paris-Orleans was allowed to make a saving by not having to serve
Chevreuse
Chevreuse () is a commune in the French department of Yvelines, administrative region of Île-de-France, north-central France.
Geography
Chevreuse is located south of Paris, in the middle of a regional natural park, Parc naturel régional de la ...
, even if it meant building a 2% ramp in the valley of Saint-Paul. The concession to build line "from Orsay to Limours" was officially granted to the Compagnie du chemin de fer de Paris à Orléans by an agreement signed on 11 June 1863 between the Minister of Public Works and the Company. This agreement was approved by an imperial decree on 6 July 1863.
The last section was inaugurated on 26 August 1867. It was built as a single track.
The Paris-Orléans period
Acquisition and modernisation
Towards the end of the 19th century, the emergence of
bogie
A bogie ( ) (in some senses called a truck in North American English) is a chassis or framework that carries a wheelset, attached to a vehicle—a modular subassembly of wheels and axles. Bogies take various forms in various modes of transp ...
s overcame the problem of wear on rails and restrictions on speed through curves without resorting to the complex system, including broad gauge, designed by Arnoux. To make the Sceaux line compatible with other networks, a decree of 1889 permitted the Arnoux system to be abandoned and adopted.
In order not to interrupt the traffic, the conversion of gauge and change of rolling stock was carried out on the night of 21/22 May 1891. The original route from Bourg-la-Reine to Sceaux was abandoned and replaced by the current route, which also comprises three stations and ends in Robinson, passing through
Fontenay-aux-Roses
Fontenay-aux-Roses () is a Communes of France, commune in the southwestern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the Kilometre Zero, center of Paris.
In 1880 a girls school École Normale Supérieure was opened in the town. It was one of ...
. Work began in June 1891 and ended in May 1893.
Extension to Luxembourg
The extension in Paris between Denfert station and Luxembourg was declared to be of public utility by a decree of 14 December 1889.
In the 1890s, the line was extended in tunnel to a new Parisian terminus at
Luxembourg
Luxembourg ( ; lb, Lëtzebuerg ; french: link=no, Luxembourg; german: link=no, Luxemburg), officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, ; french: link=no, Grand-Duché de Luxembourg ; german: link=no, Großherzogtum Luxemburg is a small lan ...
. Vents were provided for the extraction of the steam locomotives' fumes.
The
Compagnie du Paris-Orléans also planned to move this terminus to its new
Orsay station (later converted to house the
Musée d'Orsay
The Musée d'Orsay ( , , ) ( en, Orsay Museum) is a museum in Paris, France, on the Left Bank of the Seine. It is housed in the former Gare d'Orsay, a Beaux-Arts railway station built between 1898 and 1900. The museum holds mainly French art ...
), opened in 1900. The beginning of this extension still exists at the east exit of
RER C
RER C is one of the five lines in the Réseau Express Régional (English: Regional Express Network), a hybrid commuter rail and rapid transit system serving Paris, France and its suburbs. The line crosses the region from north to south.
The li ...
from the station in the form of a second double-track running tunnel parallel to the one heading towards the
Gare d'Austerlitz
The Gare d'Austerlitz (English: Austerlitz Station), officially Paris-Austerlitz, is one of the six large Paris rail termini. The station is located on the left bank of the Seine in the southeastern part of the city, in the 13th arrondissemen ...
. This is now used for train storage.
Development projects
A line from Limours to Dourdan was granted as a possible concession to the
Compagnie du chemin de fer de Paris à Orléans
The ''Compagnie du chemin de fer de Paris à Orléans'' (PO) was an early French railway company.
It merged with the ''Chemins de fer du Midi'' to form the ''Chemins de fer de Paris à Orléans et du Midi'' (PO-Midi) in 1934. In 1938 the PO-Midi ...
by an agreement signed between the Minister of Public Works and the Company on 17 June 1892. This agreement was enacted by a law of 20 March 1893.
In 1913, the government considered that the electrification of the Sceaux line was not a priority, because the opening of the
line from Paris to Chartres via Gallardon was imminent. Two of its four tracks would have been electrified, but this line was never finished. Meanwhile, the Compagnie du chemin de fer de Paris à Orléans was given a concession to extend the Sceaux line from Limours to Dourdan under an agreement signed by the Minister of Public Works and the company on 20 February 1913. This convention was approved by law on 7 July 1913, which also declared that the line had public utility. This line was never built.
As early as 1929, the Langevin plan (named after the then Minister of Public Works) included link lines in the
Paris region
Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
so as to create an urban transport infrastructure on the model of the German
S-Bahn
The S-Bahn is the name of hybrid urban- suburban rail systems serving a metropolitan region in German-speaking countries. Some of the larger S-Bahn systems provide service similar to rapid transit systems, while smaller ones often resemble co ...
. This developed into the
Réseau Express Régional
The Réseau Express Régional ( en, Regional Express Network), commonly abbreviated RER (), is a hybrid commuter rail and rapid transit system serving Paris and its Île-de-France, suburbs. It acts as a combined city-centre underground rail syst ...
(RER).
As the Langevin plan involved crossing Paris underground, the operation of steam trains would have been problematic. In 1929, it was decided to electrify the line to Massy-Palaiseau. The Compagnie du Paris-Orléans refused to take on this work at its own expense. It nevertheless carried out the electrification due to its experience and then transferred the line to the
Compagnie du chemin de fer métropolitain de Paris
The Compagnie du chemin de fer métropolitain de Paris S.A. (Paris Metropolitan Railway Company Ltd.), or CMP, was the forerunner of the RATP, the company managing the Paris Métro.
Origin
So as not to be dependent on the Chemin de fer de l' ...
(CMP). This company became part of the future
Régie autonome des transports parisiens (RATP) as a result of a merger after the Second World War with the ''Société des transports en commun de la région parisienne'' (STCRP), which managed the bus network and was entrusted with the operation of this section of the line.
The line was electrified between 1935 and 1937 and two substations were built at Paris-Montsouris and Massy-Villaine (between Massy-Verrières and Massy-Palaiseau).
The first electric train carrying passengers ran on 16 November 1937.
The electrification was carried out with
overhead line
An overhead line or overhead wire is an electrical cable that is used to transmit electrical energy to electric locomotives, trolleybuses or trams. It is known variously as:
* Overhead catenary
* Overhead contact system (OCS)
* Overhead equipmen ...
, using the 1500 volts
DC system.
![RER-B Limours1](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a8/RER-B_Limours1.jpg)
Electrification continued to the south and reached
Saint-Rémy-lès-Chevreuse
Saint-Rémy-lès-Chevreuse (, literally ''Saint-Rémy near Chevreuse'') is a commune in the Yvelines department, in the Île-de-France region of north-central France.
Saint-Rémy-lès-Chevreuse station is the southwestern endpoint of the RER B ...
on 1 January 1939. A new substation was installed near
Gif-sur-Yvette
Gif-sur-Yvette (, literally ''Gif on Yvette'') is a commune in south-western Ile de France, France. It is located from the center of Paris.
Geography
The town is crossed by and named after the river Yvette.
The total area is and is green sp ...
. Electrification was never undertaken towards the town of
Limours
Limours, often referred to as ''Limours-en-Hurepoix'' () is a commune the Essonne department in Île-de-France in northern France.
Geography
Limours is located from Paris.
Population
Inhabitants of Limours are known as ''Limouriens'' in Frenc ...
, which was always served over a single track by a
Renault VH
Renault VH is the first standard-gauge railcar produced by Renault in large numbers, starting in 1933. One hundred units were manufactured in the Ile Seguin factories near Paris. The units ran on various SNCF lines until 1970.
Two examples have ...
petrol railcar, operated every day from
Versailles-Matelots.
The operation of the unprofitable Saint-Rémy-lès-Chevreuse – Limours section was abandoned on 15 May 1939 and replaced by a coach service.
Automatic block light signalling was installed during the electrification. The colour-light signaling adopted was original and different from that of the SNCF (''Code Verlant''), since turning off a light made the signal more restrictive. Thus the absolute stop signal consisted of a single red light, the forward indication of an occupied section was indicated by two red lights. A warning was given by two yellow lights and an early warning by three yellow lights. A clear section was indicated by a green light. This signalling was replaced by the standard SNCF signalling when the line was extended to
Châtelet–Les Halles
Châtelet–Les Halles () is a major train hub in Paris and one of the largest underground stations in the world. Opened in 1977, it is the central transit hub for the Paris metropolitan area, connecting three of five RER commuter-rail lines a ...
to connect with
RER A
RER A is one of the five lines in the Réseau Express Régional (English: Regional Express Network), a hybrid commuter rail and rapid transit system serving Paris, France and its suburbs. The line crosses the region from east to west, with all t ...
.
The War
![RER-B Saint-Rémy2](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/96/RER-B_Saint-R%C3%A9my2.jpg)
The tracks of the Saint-Rémy–Limours section were torn up by the German occupiers in 1941; the
ballast
Ballast is material that is used to provide stability to a vehicle or structure. Ballast, other than cargo, may be placed in a vehicle, often a ship or the gondola of a balloon or airship, to provide stability. A compartment within a boat, ship, ...
was used for the construction of
Villacoublay by
allied
An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are called ...
forces in 1944. This was the end of use of the section, although it was not officially closed until 1967.
The rest of the line was spared by the war until 1944. However, Massy-Palaiseau railway junction, located on the
Grande Ceinture (Great Belt), which was used by the occupying forces, was the target of four Allied air raids in June 1944. The Bures sector was the target of a fifth air raid.
The post-war era and the RER
![Ligne de Sceaux motrice Z23000](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ec/Ligne_de_Sceaux_motrice_Z23000.jpg)
Newly electrified, the line was served by
Z 23000
The Z 23000 was a type of railcar run by the Compagnie du chemin de fer métropolitain de Paris (CMP). The trains, better known during their 50 years of service as the "automotrices Z" (English: ''Z railcars''), were brought in from 1934 to ser ...
(popularly known as Z) railcars for fifty years.
MS 61
The MS 61 (French: ''Matériel Suburbain de 1961'', English: ''Suburban rolling stock of 1961'') was an electric multiple unit trainset that was operated on line A and line B of the Réseau Express Régional (RER), a hybrid suburban commut ...
sets, which later circulated on the
RER A
RER A is one of the five lines in the Réseau Express Régional (English: Regional Express Network), a hybrid commuter rail and rapid transit system serving Paris, France and its suburbs. The line crosses the region from east to west, with all t ...
, also first operated on the line in 1967 and some MS 61 sets known as series A ran on the line until 1983. The last Z 23000s were withdrawn from service in 1987, not without having been of great help during the winters of 1985 and 1986, when the new
MI 79
The MI 79 (French: ''Matériel d'Interconnexion de 1979'', English: ''interconnection rolling stock of 1979''), also known as the Class Z 8100 is a Multi-system (rail), dual-voltage electric multiple unit trainset that is operated on RER B, line ...
sets suffered many breakdowns due to snow.
In the 1970s, it was decided to connect the Sceaux line to the
Gare du Nord
The Gare du Nord (; English: ''station of the North'' or ''Northern Station''), officially Paris-Nord, is one of the six large mainline railway station termini in Paris, France. The station accommodates the trains that run between the capital ...
and the lines of the Paris-Nord suburban network, in accordance with the "Master plan for development and town planning in the Paris region" (''Schéma directeur d'aménagement et d'urbanisme de la région de Paris'') of 1965.
The route involved a difficult crossing under the
Seine
)
, mouth_location = Le Havre/Honfleur
, mouth_coordinates =
, mouth_elevation =
, progression =
, river_system = Seine basin
, basin_size =
, tributaries_left = Yonne, Loing, Eure, Risle
, tributarie ...
and it was initially envisaged that
Luxembourg station
Luxembourg railway station ( lb, Gare Lëtzebuerg, french: Gare de Luxembourg, german: Bahnhof Luxemburg) is the main railway station serving Luxembourg City, in southern Luxembourg. It is operated by Chemins de Fer Luxembourgeois, the state-own ...
would be closed to allow an earlier descent to pass under the river and it would be replaced by the construction of a new station called ''Quartier Latin'', which would have been built further north towards the Carrefour de l'Odéon to allow a connection with lines
4 and
10 of the Métro.
A protest campaign by residents led to the retention of Luxembourg station. As a result, the new tunnel was built with a 4.08% grade, beginning its descent just north of the station. This required the total reconstruction of the station and the establishment of a temporary terminus at the station, with one of the platforms being extended by means of wooden planks so that both sides of the trains had access to the platforms.
A new station at
Châtelet–Les Halles
Châtelet–Les Halles () is a major train hub in Paris and one of the largest underground stations in the world. Opened in 1977, it is the central transit hub for the Paris metropolitan area, connecting three of five RER commuter-rail lines a ...
, built to give interchange with line A was inaugurated on 8 December 1977.
The Sceaux line now formed the southern branch of RER line B.
The connection between the Sceaux line in the south and the line to Roissy in the north (operated by the
SNCF
The Société nationale des chemins de fer français (; abbreviated as SNCF ; French for "National society of French railroads") is France's national state-owned railway company. Founded in 1938, it operates the country's national rail traffi ...
) and to
Mitry–Claye was finally completed at the Gare du Nord in 1983. The RER B opened in its entirety, with direct services between
Charles de Gaulle Airport
Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport (french: Aéroport de Paris-Charles-de-Gaulle, ), also known as Roissy Airport or simply Paris CDG, is the principal airport serving the French capital, Paris ( and its metropolitan area), and the largest intern ...
or Mitry-Claye and
Saint-Rémy-lès-Chevreuse
Saint-Rémy-lès-Chevreuse (, literally ''Saint-Rémy near Chevreuse'') is a commune in the Yvelines department, in the Île-de-France region of north-central France.
Saint-Rémy-lès-Chevreuse station is the southwestern endpoint of the RER B ...
or Robinson.
The four letter "mission codes" were introduced: the first letter indicates the terminus station for the service and the following letters indicate the details of the route (for instance: AILO, KNUT, POLY, LYRE, etc.)
Saint-Michel - Notre-Dame station, built to allow connection with
line C of the RER and
line 10 of the métro, was opened on 17 February 1988. This involved fitting out spaces reserved for it during the construction of the tunnel and the station is located partly under the Seine. At the same time
Cluny - La Sorbonne station on line 10 was reopened to provide interchange with line 10.
Current operations
![Rame MI79 à Saint-Rémy-lès-Chevreuse](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/df/Rame_MI79_%C3%A0_Saint-R%C3%A9my-l%C3%A8s-Chevreuse.jpg)
The line is now operated by
RATP from Gare du Nord to Robinson, Massy-Palaiseau and Saint-Rémy-lès-Chevreuse; it is enjoying significant commercial success. In Paris, the trains follow one another every three minutes.
Since 1987, line B has been operated by sets called
MI 79
The MI 79 (French: ''Matériel d'Interconnexion de 1979'', English: ''interconnection rolling stock of 1979''), also known as the Class Z 8100 is a Multi-system (rail), dual-voltage electric multiple unit trainset that is operated on RER B, line ...
by the RATP (and Z 8100 by the SNCF) and
MI 84
The MI 84 (French: ''Matériel d'Interconnexion de 1984'', English: ''interconnection rolling stock of 1984''), also known as the Class Z 8100 is a dual-voltage electric multiple unit trainset that is operated on line B of the Réseau Express ...
(called Z 8400 by the SNCF), Eight MI 84 sets were assigned to this line to complete the MI 79 fleet; the two classes are totally compatible and mixed sets of MI 79 and MI 84 are sometimes seen.
Since 2002, the RATP has carried out major work to replace the overhead line and its supports, as well as the ticket validation equipment. Consistent signage has been put in place for passengers, who also benefit from real-time information on train movements.
References
External links
*
Histoire du RER the RER history.
*
La ligne de Sceaux oubliée: a brief history of "la ligne de Sceaux", both the main section and the abandoned one from
Gare de Saint-Rémy-lès-Chevreuse to
Limours
Limours, often referred to as ''Limours-en-Hurepoix'' () is a commune the Essonne department in Île-de-France in northern France.
Geography
Limours is located from Paris.
Population
Inhabitants of Limours are known as ''Limouriens'' in Frenc ...
.
{{Authority control
Sceaux
Railway lines opened in 1846
1846 establishments in France